weston



(No Modem. I Z-Sheets-Sheet 1.

E. WESTON.

SYSTEM FOR BLEOTRIG LIGHTING. I No. 340,404. Patented Apr. 20, 1886.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2-. E. WESTON.

SYSTEM FOR ELECTRIC LIGHTING- No. 340,404. Patented Apr. ,20, 1886.

f I W %M 5M W au/w a NITED STATES FFECEQ ATENT ED\VARD \VESTON, OF NEXVARK, NEYV JERSEY, ASSIGNOE TO THE UNITED STATES ELECTRIC LIGHTING COMPANY, OF NE\V YORK, N. Y.

SYSTEM FOR ELECTRIC LIGHTING.

EEPECIFIOATION forming part cf Letters Patent No. 340,404, dated April 20, 1886.

Applicaiioirfilcd February 1, 1886. Serial No. 190,439. (No mod -I.)

To all whom it 71mg concern.-

. Be it known that I, EDWARD WnsToN, asubject of the Queen of Great Britain, and a residing of Newark, in the county of Essex and State 5 of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Systems for Electric Lighting, of which the following is a specification, reference being bad to the drawings aecompanying and forming a part of the same.

My invention relates to systems of electric lighting wherein a certain number of incandescent lamps are included in series in a circuit or in a branch of the same. The system is applicable more particularly to street-light- 1 ing, but may be used to advantage in lighting several independently-located buildings, stores, or the like from a central station.

In carrying out my invention I connect up in a branch or multiple circuit a given num- 2 her of incandescent lamps. Around eachlamp is a eut-out magnet of high resistance having an armature that acts as a contact-maker, to

close, when it is attracted by its magnet, a

circuit around the lamp, which circuit is nor- 2 mally open and contains a resistance equal to that of the lamp, and a magnetic locking device for maintaining the circuit closed through the resistance under the conditions hereinafter described. A

0 The cut-out magnetsare of such high resistance that practically very little current flows through them, not sufficient in any event to attract the circuit-closing armatures unless the lamp around which the magnet is placed should be extinguished. In such case the di version of current operates to close the resistance-circuit, and the locking-magnet therein keeps it closed as long as the main or lamp circuit is interrupted between the terminals 40 of said circuit. In this way the resistance of the line or branch is maintained uniform. The same result is attained by removing the resistances from the circuit, around the lamps and using a rheostat at some one point in the line or branch,which maybe varied either by hand or automatically to maintain the line-resistanceuniform. The locking-magnets in this case act merely to preserve the continuity of the line in case of the extinguishment of one or more lamps.

In the drawings I have illustrated so much of this system with its lll'lPl'OVClllGlllS as is nec essary to an umlerstanding of the invention.

Figure lis a diagram showing a generator, r one of the branch circuits, and the devices 5:, connected therewith. Fig. 2 is a similar diagram illustrating a modification of the systeni.

The branch or multiple circuits may be formed in any of the wellunderstood ways 6: that is to say, the branches may be started at or near the generator oriromdili'ercnt points along the circuit. In the present case, for convenience,the main conductors are branched at points ncarthe generators and two branches are indicated, one being shown entire. Of these the conductor A is one andB the other, and as all the branches are alike onlyone will be described.

In the circuit A are connected up in sec ries a given number of incandescent lamps, C C, around each of which is a magnet, D, in a shunt of high resistancc,'c. In front of the poles of magnets D are pivoted armature-levers E, arranged to vibrate between a back 7; stop, (Z, and a contact, 0, the levers being held normally against the stops d, and not drawn upby their magnets, except in the ease of an interruption of the circuit in the lamps. The levers E are connected to line A by wires f, which are also connected to the front contactstops, g,of pivoted armaturc-levers E,opcrated by magnet G.

The resistance-circuits are formed by the wires h,leading from the contacts 6 to theline 3 A on the opposite side of the lamp, and including a resistaneeeoil, R, and a magnet, G. The wires h are also connected to the armature-levers F, as shown, so that the action of any one of the devices is as follows:

Normally the armature E is held against its stop d,and armature F against the stop k. The circuit through the resistance and magnet G is therefore interrupted. If,undcr these' e011- ditions,a lamp be extinguished,its shunt-mag- 9 5 net D draws up the armature E and completes the circuit throngh the wires f and h. The magnet G, being thus energized, attracts its armature F and closes the circuit through wire f to the contact 9, through the armature F, and I00 through the resistance and magnet. By this means the resistance-circuit about the lamp is locked, and so remains until another lamp is put in. WVhen this is done,the magnet G, assuming the lamp to be inserted while the current is flowing, loses its power, so that the spring S draws over the armature F and interrupts the resistance-circuit.

It is desirable in this system to have a current or lamp indicator, L, in each branch of the cireuit,to show the condition of the line.

A modification of the above-described arrangement, which, in view of the systems heretofore invented and used by me, is an obvious equiy alent therefor, is shown in Fig. 2. In this case the resistances R are taken out of the circuits h and placed together at some convenient point in the branch circuit, as in the rheostat R. Variations of resistance caused by the extinguishment of lamps will be indi cat-ed by the ampere-meter or lamp-indicator L, and may be compensated for by adjusting the rheostat by hand, or by any other equivalent and well-understood manner.

\Vhat I claim as my invention is- 1. In a system of electric lighting wherein the incandescent lamps are included in series in the circuit, the combination, with each of said lamps, of a constantly-closedshunt-circuit of high resistance and a normally-open resistance shunt-circuit, an electro-magnet in closed shunt adapted to complete the resistance-circuit when the lamp is extinguished, and an electro-magnetic locking mechanism in the resistance-circuit, for preserving the continuity of the same when once established, as set forth.

2. In a system of electric lighting wherein the incandescent lamps are included in series in branch es or multiple circuits from the mains, the combination, with each of said lamps, of a constantly-closed shunt of high resistance and a normally-open shunt-circuit containing a resistance equal to that of a lamp, an electromagnet in'the closed shunt adapted to complete the resistance-circuit when the lamp is extinguished, and electro-magnetic locking mechanism in the resistance-circuit, for pre serving the continuity of said circuit when once established, as set forth.

3. In a system of electric lighting wherein the incandescent lamps are included in series in branches or multiple circuits from the mains, the combination, with each lamp, of a closed shunt-circuit of high resistance and a normally-open shunt-oi rcuit, electro magnets with circuit-closing armatures connected with each of the said shunts, respective] y, circuit-connections, substantially as described, whereby, on the extinguishment of the lamp, the magnet in the closed shunt completes the circuit through the other magnet and causes it, by the attraction of its armature, to maintain its circuit closed, and resistances for compensating for lamps extinguished, as set forth.

JOHN G. YOUNG, HENRY A. BEOKMEYER. 

